Most healthy people, who regularly brush their teeth and visit the dentist, are suitable for implants. Dental implants can be a great solution for people of any age.

While implants are suitable for most people, there are circumstances where implants may not be suitable. It’s important that you speak to your Portman dentist if you’re concerned about any of the below.

1. Heavy smoking, which slows down and hinders the healing process.
2. Excessive alcohol intake, which can disrupt healing of the gums.
3. Those with a weak bones, as the implant needs to fuse with the bone in the jaw.
4. Severe gum disease. Tooth decay and/or gum disease needs to be treated before proceeding with a dental implant. Gum disease is a major cause of bone loss, which would hinder the success of any implant procedure.
5. People with compromised immune systems.
6. People who suffer from teeth grinding (bruxism).

Missing teeth can be managed in a number of ways. These can be summaries as follows:

Accept the space, which is obviously unacceptable for front teeth and not advised for back teeth.

Replace the missing tooth or teeth with a denture which is patient removable. Dentures can replace some of the teeth (partial denture) or all the teeth (full denture). A partial denture is often used as a provisional prosthesis as it can be made prior to tooth extraction and be fitted at the time the teeth are extracted. If you find wearing a partial denture is satisfactory then no other treatment may be required.

Replace the missing tooth or teeth with a bridge which is fixed to either natural teeth or dental implants and is not patient removable. Bridges fall into two categories. The first are adhesive bridges that bond to the back of an adjacent tooth. They require little tooth preparation and can provide long term solutions to missing teeth. If they have a drawback it is that they can de-bond unexpectedly. The second type of bridge cements over a natural tooth. This type of tooth borne bridge requires extensive tooth reduction that can lead to a tooth dying or fracturing. Both types of bridges require reasonably healthy teeth to attach to. If a supporting tooth is lost then the bridge is lost.